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Claire B

- Research Program Mentor

PhD candidate at Yale University

Expertise

Resource recovery, water and wastewater treatment, renewable energy, air pollution control in environmental engineering, data analysis using R programming, engineering for developing communities (WASH), environmental sustainability, nanotechnology, electrochemistry

Bio

Hi, I'm Claire. My expertise lies in environmental engineering and energy engineering with a focus on water and wastewater treatment and resource recovery. Our current engineered systems are linear with inputs of energy and chemicals derived from non-renewable sources and waste outputs that are sent to landfills or dumped in natural systems. But what if we could use novel processes to separate resources (like nitrogen, carbon, or energy) from these waste streams and modify them to be desirable materials for other processes (such as fertilizer or ethanol)? My research focuses on transforming these linear processes into circular systems using electrochemical techniques while considering the environmental impact and economic cost of the alternative process. I have worked in the drinking water industry and now I'm in graduate school with the goal of understanding how to make water and wastewater treatment processes more sustainable. I am an avid rock climber, runner, and hiker. I love spending my weekends hanging out with friends, baking new recipes, being outside, and reading. A random fact about me is that I was born on a Friday the 13th and, just like Taylor Swift, 13 is my lucky number. My favorite book is A Six of Crows.

Project ideas

Project ideas are meant to help inspire student thinking about their own project. Students are in the driver seat of their research and are free to use any or none of the ideas shared by their mentors.

What a Waste!

It's inevitable and inescapable: humans generate waste. But how we define and manage this waste is what will have a lasting impact on our own health, and the environment. The goal of this project is for the student to choose an activity they do on a daily basis that generates waste (either wastewater or food), and explore where that waste goes and what possible resources could be recovered during the engineering waste management process. For example, examine how much and what types of waste are produced from a week's worth of groceries. There are plastic food packages, aluminum cans, glass jars, and food waste from preparing vegetables for cooking or banana peels. How does your community process the waste? What properties/characteristics of the waste still have value if transformed by a thermal, biological, chemical, or mechanical process? What processes/technologies can be utilized to recovery a valuable product? How can the linear system become circular? Are these processes environmentally and economical sustainable? What are the limitations and drawbacks of this technology? Throughout this project, the student will gain an understanding of resource recovery topics that they contribute to daily and an introduction to the technologies currently used (and not yet used) to manage their waste.

Coding skills

R Studio

Teaching experience

I have worked as a teaching fellow as part of my PhD, including running office hours, help sessions, and leading discussions. During my undergraduate career, I was an applied math TA and took a pedagogical class. Beyond teaching, I have worked as a peer mentor for fellow environmental engineering students, with students on Polygence, and tutoring. I also have experience working as a head rock climbing instructor for my competitive team in high school and undergrad.

Credentials

Work experience

Corona Environmental Consulting (2021 - 2022)
Engineering Intern

Education

University of Colorado at Boulder
BS Bachelor of Science (2021)
Environmental Engineering
Yale University
MS Master of Science
Chemical and Environmental Engineering
Yale University
PhD Doctor of Philosophy candidate
Chemical and Environmental Engineering

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